RICHFIELD, Utah — The Bureau of Land Management Richfield Field Office today announced a 30-day comment period for the Pinyon Juniper Project Maintenance environmental assessment. The environmental assessment evaluates the potential environmental impacts of the removal of pinyon and juniper regrowth in areas that have previously undergone pinyon-juniper treatments on public lands in Sanpete, Sevier, Wayne, Piute, and Garfield counties. 

“Public participation is the foundation of the NEPA process,” said Richfield Field Manager David Mortensen. “The public’s input at this point in the environment assessment process is critical to a thorough analysis.”  

The Pinyon Juniper Project Maintenance environmental assessment considers the effects of addressing the infilling of pinyon-juniper woodlands into sagebrush systems restored through previous pinyon-juniper vegetation treatment actions. Some of the potential Pinyon Juniper Project Maintenance action areas encompass Greater-Sage Grouse Priority Habitat Management Areas, Utah Prairie Dog Habitat, and other critical seasonal habitats for sagebrush obligate species.  

Throughout the last six decades, the Richfield Field Office has completed approximately 66,000 acres of pinyon-juniper treatment projects across Sanpete, Sevier, Wayne, Piute, and Garfield counties. If approved, the Pinyon Juniper Project Maintenance action aims to maintain the sagebrush steppe habitat restored by previous treatments, reduce fuels for wildfire, protect wildlife habitat, support ecosystem resiliency, maintain forage to wildlife and livestock, and increase perennial plant cover and diversity in previously treated areas.  

This 30-day comment period is an opportunity for the public and stakeholders to weigh in on the proposed Pinyon Juniper Project Maintenance environmental assessment. Comments received will contribute to the development of a final environmental assessment that will evaluate all potential environmental impacts of the proposed plan. Comments will be accepted until July 13, 2023. 

To review the draft environmental assessment visit https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2018909/510. 

Comments may be submitted in the following ways: 

•  Email to: BLM_UT_RF_Comments@blm.gov,
• US Mail to:  

Attn: Pinyon Juniper Project Maintenance 

Bureau of Land Management    

Richfield Field Office Planning and Environmental Coordinator  

150 East 900 North    

Richfield, UT 84701 or   

• Online via the “participate now” feature on the National NEPA Register at https://eplanning.blm.gov/eplanning-ui/project/2018909/510.   

Before including an address, phone number, email address or other personally identifiable information in any comments, be aware that the entire comment—including personal identifying information—may be made publicly available at any time. Requests to withhold personal identifying information from public review can be submitted, but the BLM cannot guarantee that it will be able to do so.

Original source can be found here